𝗦𝗢𝗨𝗥 𝗖𝗔𝗡𝗗𝗬 - 𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝘀𝘀

𝗛𝗔𝗣𝗣𝗬 𝗛𝗢𝗥𝗠𝗢𝗡𝗘𝗦

my room is dark, the only light peeking in comes from my cracked door, and my eyes flutter as the bright gap grows larger.

i had some trouble falling asleep, my brother and his friend, chris, were being loud. they stayed up late and i only fell asleep about an hour ago, the tired weight in my body became too much and it forced my eyes shut.

in the doorway stands a figure, a man, but i cant see his face—it's too dark. i shuffle to sit up and reach for my lamp but he's getting closer. my hands aren't working, i can't seem to get a study grasp on the lamp.

it could be my dad, sometimes he comes into my room late, especially on nights like tonight. he wasn't home when i went to bed, we was working late. i remember when i was younger he used to creep into my room in the dead of night and kiss my on the cheek before whispering, "goodnight, sweet girl." he still did it occasionally, except somewhere in the depth of my high school years the kiss on my cheek was replaced with a light rub on my hand, just to let me know that he's there.

i reach my fingers around the knob on my childhood nightlight as my bedroom door shuts and he grows nearer. my heart pounds faster and my breath gets more shallow with each step that he takes towards my bed.

once i get the light on it becomes clear who the man is. even in my daze i recognize his face; it's chris!

what the hell is he doing in here?

"dude, it's late." i croak. "what do you want? you scared me."

he doesn't answer, instead he mumbles something along the lines of "don't scream", but it's too late. he's pushing down on top of me and i cant move. i'm confused and hazy but i know it's not right.

i open my mouth to scream but nothing comes out, instead mouth falls dry and it shrivels up the rest of the body parts that i need to make noise. a hand is around my throat and i cant breathe, i'm suffocating. i gasp for air and claw at the hand, ignoring the burning in my thighs, but chris won't let go; he's going to kill me. i choke and i sputter and i inhale and i exhale but i still breathe.

my head feels like it's going to fly off of my body, my vision gets blurry and my mind grows lighter and lighter until it's not there anymore. it fades into an array of dancing lights, each of them either black or white. i feel like i'm being hypnotized by my own mind and i want it to stop, i can still feel everything that he's doing to me but his face is a blur and his words sink in and out of range.

i'm gasping for air as i sit up quickly, my forehead nearly clashing with my knees as i form into a smaller ball. i'm gulping air as fast as i can, his weight is off of me but i still feel heavy. i reach to my left, fumbling for my nightlight lamp, but nothing is there. it's still dark in my room and i cant see a thing but i do feel someone in bed next to me. they're sitting up as well, is it chris?

my body is shaking beyond control and my eyes burn as they brim with tears. what's going on? i still feel the torrent ripping through my body as the memories replay and i figure that i'd had a nightmare—it's not real emilia, it's not real. the person in bed next to me is still a mystery but they're saying my name too. i cant answer though, i'm too far engulfed in the fire raging inside of me. it's burns my insides and sets my intestines on fire, i want to claw at my skin like i did his hands and rip the heat away i cant really feel anything other than the raging scorch; not the sheets under my skin or the pillows behind me.

i can barely hear the person next to me repeating, "what's wrong?" over the blood roaring in my ears.

i've never had a nightmare like this before, not one that has sent me into an episode this horrifying. it's even worse that someone is here with me, how embarrassing?